Twitchers flock to Hebrides to catch a glimpse of visiting Harlequin duck

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A rare species of duck last seen in Britain six years ago has turned up in the Outer Hebrides. The Harlequin duck was last recorded in 2007 — again in the Western Isles — and there have only been 14 confirmed sightings since 1954.

The drake, which is the most colourful of the sexes, has had twitchers flocking to the island.

“This is a very rare sighting,” said a spokesman for Bird Guides. “They are usually found in America but there is an outpost colony of 3,000-5,000 pairs in Iceland and this bird has almost certainly come from there.”